December 2018

Several recent “first of kind” enforcement proceedings continue the flurry of enforcement activity by regulators. In two settled proceedings, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought two cases for failure to register digital tokens as securities in connection with initial coin offerings (ICOs), without allegations of fraud. With such enforcement actions now commonplace, a “crypto winter” has clearly set in. In another development, a federal court recently issued the first opinion concluding that the SEC had failed to establish that a digital asset issued in connection with an ICO was a “security” under the federal securities laws, underscoring that digital assets will not be subject to a one-size-fits-all analysis.

As for the two settled charges, according to the SEC’s orders, Paragon Coin, Inc.[1] and AirFox[2] launched their ICOs in 2017. Paragon is an online company that was established to implement blockchain technology in the cannabis industry, as well as to work towards legalization of cannabis. Through its ICO, Paragon raised approximately $12 million in digital assets to develop and expand its business. As for AirFox, it sells mobile technology intended to allow customers to earn free or discounted data by watching advertisements on their phones. AirFox raised approximately $15 million in its ICO to help expand its business overseas. Neither Paragon nor AirFox registered their ICOs.